Daily Christian Encouragement

The Danger of Life In Between

No one can deny the turmoil of our country right now. The debate focuses on a few seemingly disparate topics such as gender, socialism, global warming, and race. The connecting thread among these is a very clear concern with the physical. The earth, our bodies, our gender, our race, and our comforts are deemed of primary importance. However, if we define ourselves by the physical, we are defining ourselves ultimately by death. For all its allure, this physical life is characterized primarily by its brevity.

It was not always so.

When God created man, He made him like no other. Laid before Adam was a beautiful and diverse creation—all completely physical. Also before man was the completely different and separate spiritual reality of God. But in man—these two would meet. In man, we see something like no other—one possessing both spirit and body. And what a gift!

Unfortunately, Adam and Eve rejected this gift and chose a path that brought death and separation. For centuries, humans walked around as physical beings with a spiritual hunger and nothing in sight to answer that desire inside. In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis articulates this beautifully: “If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world.”

Another Chance at Life

God could have left it here. After all, the gift had been given and rejected. But God, in his love, repaired the breach. Jesus gave His life to resurrect our spiritual lives. Since then, Christians have been learning to walk in this new dual reality of the physical and spiritual once again.

In 2015, Disney released Tomorrowland. In one scene, the main character touches a lapel pin with the letter I on it that transfers her into an interactive, futuristic utopia. As she walks around this world, however, she learns surprisingly that she is still in her own world. Initially this causes her many problems, but, after a while, she learns how to navigate both worlds at the same time.

Like her, we too must learn to navigate two worlds simultaneously. We must deal with our unwieldy bodies which are so demanding, and also walk in a utopia too beautiful to comprehend. We must identify the limitations of this world but the absolute importance of the choices made here. It is dangerous to allow either world full sway while we live in between, but it is a glorious danger. It is a danger we were made for.

I am in love with story. As an English teacher, my life is centered around the stories throughout the ages, and, as a believer, my life is centered around the story of all time by the Author of all the ages. I love seeing God's truth all around me and using that to encourage and inspire people to draw closer to Him.

8 thoughts on “The Danger of Life In Between”

Tatyana – you eloquently explain the “dual reality” in which we live and how we, as believers, should navigate our lives, living “in between.” Thank you for sharing this beautiful perspective and serving as a reminder that we are made for this! 🙂